Mummy’s Little Helper – A Foster Care Book Review

From the Cover of Mummy’s Little Helperby Casey Watson:

“In less than a day Abigail’s whole life had imploded. She’d gone to school expecting to come home again but instead she’d been picked up, told her mother was in hospital and that tonight she would have to sleep somewhere else.

I was used to dealing with kids from bad situations, but it seemed inexplicable that this sweet little girl didn’t have a single other place she could go.”

Grade:

What Our Family Thought:

Mummy’s Little Helper allows readers a look into the daily life of a professional therapeutic foster home in the United Kingdom. Each of Casey’s (pseudonym) books detail a case study of sorts—the time while a particular child (or children) was in her care. This book tells the story of a child named Abigail, who comes into foster care because it is found that she has been caring for her seriously ill mother and has no one else to look after her while her mother is hospitalized.

Issues dealt with in this book include:

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)

Child caregiver

Birth family conflict

False allegations

Foster parent investigation

Memoirs by Casey Watson make for lighter reading than parenting books but are very interesting. As caregivers we can glean from the experiences of professional carers like Mrs. Watson. I recommend this book and look forward to reading more of her work.

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It’s Your Turn:

How is caring for Abigail different than caring for other children typically in foster care?

What did you glean or learn from this book?

How have you had to advocate for a child in your care when you have noticed behaviors or symptoms that indicated a need for further help for the child?

Has your advocacy ever gotten you in trouble?

Have you ever been disciplined or investigated as a foster caregiver? How did you feel during the process?